Because of her jiu-jitsu success, Dern drew comparisons to the UFC's first woman champion, Ronda Rousey, who had a successful judo career before she transitioned to MMA. I hope I can do that too – even do more than what she’s done.”However, Dern also thinks her road to UFC success will be more difficult than Rousey’s. “She came into MMA when women’s MMA was very new,” Dern said. My division, for my opinion, is the hardest division in women’s (MMA), even more than her division (135 pounds) today. Dern said that she thinks fighters weren't quite as prepared for Rousey's judo background at the time Rousey was rising through the ranks.

Source: Forbes May 04, 2018 04:07 UTC